According to a recent study published on
Biomaterials Science, researchers led by Prof. DAI Jianwu from the Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) indicated the feasibility of combining the rotary cell culture system (RCCS) with collagen scaffold-based three-dimensional (3D) cell culture for producing tissue engineering seed cells in the treatment of spinal cord injury (SCI).
How to use microgravity in tissue engineering field had drawn much attention. In this study, 3D cells cultured in RCCS were implanted in SCI animal models to investigate whether microgravity can be applied in stem cell-based therapy for SCI. The RCCS bioreactor was designed by NASA and mimics the microgravity in space.
Immunofluorescence staining analysis indicated that there were more surviving transplanted cells and functional neurons at the injury site in RCCS group.
Meanwhile, the transplantation of 3D cells in RCCS can relieve inflammation and the formation of scar at the injury site.
Basso-Beattie-Bresnahan score, inclined plane test, and electrophysiology, indicated that 3D cultured neural stem cells cultured in RCCS had better therapeutic effects than those cultured in a traditional cell culture environment.
The combination of RCCS and 3D cell culture method shows promise for application in cell-based therapy for SCI in the future.
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China and the Strategic Priority Research Program of CAS.
Schematic diagram of the 3D-cultured NSCs from RCCS or traditional static environment was implanted at the injury site in spinal cord injury animals. (Image by IGDB)
